Only Human
by BBQkitten
Summary: It was a hard lesson for Soul Society to learn. They watched as their hero crumbled at their feet, cried as he closed his eyes for the last time, and mourned when his body began to fade.


**Disclaimer: Don't own it.**

It was a hard lesson for Soul Society to learn. They watched as their hero crumbled at their feet, cried as he closed his eyes for the last time, and mourned when his body began to fade.  
Most couldn't understand. It was just a sickness and he was Kurosaki Ichigo, savior of the worlds. How could something as simple as an illness defeat him?

At first, they laughed it off. There was no way a silly little cold could ever take down the orange haired devil. It was just a small bump in the road; he would be back to himself in no time. And Kenpachi couldn't wait to beat the weak out of the boy. The brute that was the eleventh division captain clearly stated that the only reason the kid should be lying in bed is because of him.

After the first week however, some people began to worry. Unohana and Ukitake were the first to notice something was seriously wrong with the berry but couldn't do anything to help him on the Soutaichou's orders.

Rukia could plainly see that something must be wrong with her best friend but didn't want to admit that Ichigo could actually be dying so she played it off as him being a drama queen that needed the sense knocked back into him. She called on Renji and together the two made their way to the Kurosaki household. It was a sad sight, however, once they reached the quaint little home. They were greeted with half mumbled apologies for the disorganized state of their house by the normally exuberant Kurosaki Isshin who was particularly somber as he led the duo upstairs to where they could hear painful coughs emanating from Ichigo's room. The two shinigami gave each other a hard look and slowly brought their bodies inside the dark room.

He was pale with dark circles underneath his eyes, displaying, quite clearly, how well he had been sleeping lately. His hair hung in limp clumps around his face as he gave the two shinigami a weak smile, waving his hand half-heartedly.

Rukia, mortified by the appearance of Ichigo's sickly state, sat down beside him on the bed, her previous intentions to beat the sick out of him long forgotten. She took ahold of one of his hands and cupped it in both of hers. He had grown skinnier in the past week, or maybe he had always been skinny and she had just never noticed until now. Either way, he was much too thin to be healthy. She didn't say anything as she held his hand, absentmindedly tracing nonsensical patterns on his palm.

Renji slowly walked over to the bed and sat down cross-legged on the floor by his head. Carefully, he brought a hand up to feel the boy's forehead, flinching when he felt how hot he was. Renji's eyebrows rose in confusion as he got up on his knees to get a better look at the kid.

The two shinigami were silent as they took over for Ichigo's little sisters; laying cool rags on the boy's forehead, forcing him to drink water through his cracked lips, and soothing him whenever he had a coughing fit. After the first week of their taking care of the substitute shinigami, Renji was forced to go back and take care of his lieutenant duties. He promised to come back as soon as he could and with parting words, "You better be healthy by the time I get back," he was gone.

Unbeknownst to him, it would be the last time he ever saw his orange haired friend alive.

Rukia refused to leave his side for more than a few minutes. Thanks to her more than understanding captain, she was granted temporary leave from Seireitei and permission to have a vacation in the human world. She spent the next two weeks caring for Ichigo, even when he told her to go home and rest.

"I'll rest when you're better," she had said, giving him a sad smile.

It was nearing the end of Ichigo's fourth week of illness when his condition changed, though it wasn't for the better like they had all hoped. He began to cough up more than just air, staining his hands with his blood, and he was always shivering, the sickness was closing in on him and there was nothing anyone could do.

Rukia held his hand tightly in hers in his last moments as tears silently fell down her cheeks. Ichigo reached up with a shaky hand to brush the water away and she grabbed it before he could pull it away, holding it to her face as she gave him a sad, watery smile.

"You're going to make me cry, midget."

She could only choke out a laugh at his poor attempt at humor and lean down to cover him with her body in a fierce yet gentle hug. His breathing became raspier and he gently placed a hand on the back of Rukia's head, threading his fingers through her hair as it became harder to take another breath.

"Thank you."

Rukia wasn't sure if it was him who whispered that or if it was her but it still brought more tears to her eyes as she broke down into sobs, crying out in anguish when he stopped breathing and she couldn't feel his heartbeat beneath her head.

Slowly, she sat up and looked around the room, her eyes stopping on the familiar mop of orange hair standing in the corner with a pained look on his face. He looked down at the chain protruding from his chest. "Guess I'm dead?" Rukia nodded as she made her way over to him. "You know what you have to do." Rukia nodded again and pulled out her sword.

Before she konso'd him, she stood up on her tip toes and placed a gentle kiss on his lips.

"I'll find you. I'll make you remember."

He gave her a smile as he began to fade, "I look forward to it."

Yes, it was a hard lesson for Soul Society to learn. They watched as their hero crumbled at their feet, cried as he closed his eyes for the last time, and mourned when his body began to fade. But they understood; Kurosaki Ichigo had only been human.

**AN: I know it's short but please review and tell me what you thought! If you have a paring request leave it in a review or PM and I'll try to make it happen! **

**REVIEW! :)**


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